In this post I want to draw a parallel between two seemingly disparate symbols – “Taking the Knee” and our flag (the Union or St George flag). Both are highly charged symbols and both, I’m my opinion, have been hijacked by those who don’t have their best interests at heart.
Flags first. I mention the Union flag and the flag of St George in particular because I don’t believe the flags representing Wales, Scotland or (maybe to a lesser extent considering the sectarian divide) Northern Ireland have the same baggage attached to them. I am proud of where I come from. I’m a proud Yorkshireman, a proud Englishman and a proud Briton. For me the main symbol of attachment to these entities are their flags – the white rose, the flag of St George and the Union flag. The last two of these have, for far too long, been misappropriated by the far right. You see any sort of assembly of knuckle dragging thugs venting their racist, bigoted and xenophobic mantras, you will see both flags being waved by these morons. To many decent people both flags are seen as tainted by these far right thugs and their symbolism to some has been besmirched. None of the bigots that appropriate them understand their true meaning. For me they symbolise an open, welcoming and tolerant nation. A nation that values free speech, decency, democracy and the rule of law. Certainly NOT bigotry, xenophobia and division.
You go to most other countries and there isn’t an issue with flying their national flag. You’ll see it flying from houses, schools and other public buildings. You see people proud to wear their national flag as a pin badge. The appropriation of our Union flag and the cross of St George has been so total in the past that those who show any sort of pride or positive emotion towards them are looked at with disdain and often disgust. A few years ago I wanted, in my own tiny way, to try and buck this trend. I wore a union jack pin badge on my suit for work. I did see people give me funny looks when they saw it. One person – someone I respected a lot – actually asked when I had joined the National Front! It was said in a joking sort of way but even saying it was informative of what that symbol has started to mean to some.
To me and to many decent people, flying a Union flag or a cross of St George is showing a pride in where you come from and a pride in its values – the positive values I spoke of earlier. The appropriation by the far right is weakening but it is still there. Think of the response of Emily Thornberry in 2014 when canvassing in the Rochester and Strood by-election when she came across a house with St George’s flags flying from it. Her snooty, ignorant and high-minded response fed into this appropriation nonsense.
Now to “Taking the knee”, a symbol that has become particularly charged over the previous few months. This symbol came (back) into prominence after the murder of George Floyd in the USA last year. Driven by the organisation Black Lives Matter (BLM) it has been used to symbolise a protest against racial violence and discrimination. When the Premier League returned to complete last season, the first game between Sheffield United and Aston Villa saw the players and officials ‘take the knee’ before the start of the game. At that point, the symbol was widely accepted and applauded. This has continued and before the start of many sporting matches, players and officials continue to take the knee. The difficulty now is that a number of teams and players have become uncomfortable – for many and varied reasons – in continuing this gesture, and we’ve seen, since fans have returned to sporting events (especially football matches) booing when players and officials do this at the beginning of the game.
For me the issue is the same as those that mock those who are proud of the flag of the UK or England. In the case of those who are proud of the flag, it is seen by those ignorant of the facts that these people are little Englanders, bigoted and xenophobic in their outlook. In the case of those taking the knee that they are supportive of the aims of Black Lives Matter, an organisation seen in some quarters as neo-Marxist and supportive of some, on the face of it, pretty radical (offensive?) proposals. Think the hashtag #DefundThePolice – a hashtag that is almost certainly designed to be deliberately provocative and a totally accurate description of what is actually promoted which is well outlined in this Guardian article)
How many of those who are supportive of the gesture have made the effort of researching what the BLM movement actually stand for? I would say a tiny fraction. The vast majority of those who make this gesture are doing it because they are supportive of what the gesture means. They support the meaning not the organisation. In the same way that those who make the lazy assumptions of those who show pride in a flag, similar lazy assumptions are being made about those who take the knee. Both symbols have been hijacked and tarnished by those that don’t have their real meanings at heart.
Indeed thde gesture of taking the knee was not created by the BLM movement. For many years it has been used as a symbol of peaceful protest such as Martin Luther King in Selma for an example.
It came back into prominence in 2016 when Colin Kaepernick, a San Francisco 49ers player “took the knee” whilst the US National Anthem was being played at the beginning of American Football games. He was protesting racial inequality in American society. Initially he had sat down for the anthem and this resulted in much opprobrium and an open letter from an ex-green beret Nate Boyer. Kaepernick and Boyer met and discussed their different views and Boyer suggested taking the knee as a respectful way of protesting. There is an interesting article about how this came about on the Sky Sports website.
For me there is a freedom of speech and expression argument here. Many of those who boo the gesture are just the same people who moan that they don’t have freedom of speech any more. Freedom of speech and expression work both ways. Treating every single person who continues to use this gesture as a supporter of the BLM organisation is just as lazy and bigoted as those who castigate people for being proud of their national flag. We need to end the misappropriation of symbols by those who do not have the best interest of these symbols at heart. Be proud of your flag and be proud to take the knee but also make sure you fully understand what that symbol stands for and that some people and some organisations may try to use it for their own, not always positive aims.
The View from Pengeston 